It is a common experience to use, e.g., a wireless or wireline telephone, to call a telephone operator for information assistance. In a typical information assistance call, a caller, i.e., customer, identifies to the operator the name and address, or sometimes city or area code, of a party whose telephone number is desired. In response, the operator locates the desired destination number using, e.g., a computer database. The destination number may be provided to the customer by a computerized voice server, and the customer is afforded the option to be connected to the destination number without the need to first terminate the information assistance call.
Even though a customer subscribes to a telephone service provided by a particular carrier, e.g., AT&T Wireless Services Inc., or branding partner, e.g., Virgin, the information assistance service accessed through the telephone service may be contracted by the carrier, and may be operated by an independent contractor. Thus, carriers may contract with different information assistance providers to provide information assistance services for them. When a subscriber to the carrier makes an information assistance call by dialing such typical access digits as “411,” “*555,” “555-1212,” “00,” “1-800-555-1212,” etc., because of the contractual relationship, the carrier routes such an information assistance call to its contracted information assistance service provider to handle the information request.
Enhanced information assistance services may also be provided to a customer, via contract with a carrier, during or after connection to a destination number in an information assistance call. For example, upon request, an operator may also search certain databases to obtain for the customer information concerning restaurants, movie listings, directions to given places, etc. These databases may provide such information as the titles of the movies being played, the names of the theaters playing a given movie, and the telephone number of a given theater, etc. Another example of an enhanced service is the STARBACK® service, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,797,092 (“the '092 patent”), whereby a caller after being connected to a desired party can be reconnected to an operator by pressing a “*” key, or otherwise issuing a command, e.g., saying “operator.”
A customer may request a credit for unsatisfactory services in an information assistance call, conveniently termed a “bad call” here. Such a credit request conventionally requires that a credit transaction be processed downstream in a billing platform. This downstream bill processing is typically conducted by a third party, but may be conducted by the information service provider. This downstream processing of customer credits for bad calls generates considerable expense for the entity which bills the calls, which may or may not be the information service provider.
Typically, an operator takes down certain call information concerning the call for which credit is requested and transmits that information, as a hardcopy document, to the billing platform vendor. Alternatively, the operator may input the credit request call information into a computer, which then creates a credit request file that is transmitted to the billing platform. Thus, conventionally, an event record for the call to be credited is transmitted to the billing platform, along with the hardcopy credit request document or the credit request file, as the case may be.
During bill processing in the billing platform, a search may be conducted in the billing platform, either manually or as part of a computer routine, to identify and pull the billing record corresponding to the credit request. Once the record is identified, a credit transaction is performed so that the credit and the call charge appear on the same invoice. Thus, downstream processing of credit requests results in not only the bad call being processed, but also the subsequent credit.
All records entering bill processing downstream from call processing, i.e., entering the billing platform, generate an expense. This expense is increased when a credit transaction must also be processed because it increases not only the number of records to be processed in the billing platform, but also requires special handling for the creation of the credit transaction.
Credit requests further increase bill processing expenses because often these requests are made via calls to a customer service center. Customers typically call the information service provider's customer service center toll-free number, which results in the information service provider incurring expensive 1-800 line charges. In addition, calling an information assistance provider's customer service call center also results in the information service provider incurring additional expenses associated with taking up the customer service operator's time.
The conventional process for providing customers with credit can also result in excess credit being given. For example, credit may be given for an entire call, even though credit for only a portion of the call is due. In addition, downstream credit processing may also result in credits being given for calls that were not bad calls because of errors inherent in issuing credit manually.
What is desired, therefore, is a system and method for cost-effectively issuing customers credit for a bad call (which is understood to include a portion of a call). What is further desired is a system and method for ensuring that credit is issued for only the portion of a call in which wrong or no service was provided. What is still further desired is a system and method for more accurately identifying the call or portion of the call which is to be credited.